Mariano Rivera gave up two hits, including Nate Freiman's game-winning RBI single, as the Oakland Athletics broke through for a 3-2 victory in 18 innings Thursday, completing a three-game sweep of the New York Yankees.

"A little broken-bat blooper over the third baseman, and the other one the same place," Rivera said. "You can't do anything about it."

The Hall of Fame-bound closer entered with one out and a runner on first, then allowed soft singles to left by Seth Smith and Freiman around an intentional walk to Jed Lowrie as the A's took advantage of the Yankees' powerless offense to claim the season series 5-1 in 5 hours, 34 minutes. New York scored eight runs in 36 innings in the series.

"It was very taxing even winning the game," A's manager Bob Melvin said. "To lose could have been demoralizing."

The A's are the first American League team with two games of at least 18 innings since 1971 (Washington and Oakland).

The Yankees scored two runs on Robinson Cano's homer in the first inning, then went into shutdown mode, wasting several opportunities in extra innings.

Cano's homer ended a stretch of five games in a row without going deep for the Yankees — their longest since 2000 — and that was the extent of their power display.

The Yankees ranked 11th in the American League in runs scored (3.97 a game) coming in, ninth in home runs and 10th in slugging. New York was first or second in the league in runs every year between 2009 and 2012.

This would have been a great lineup in 2009, when Kevin Youkilis, Ichiro Suzuki and Mark Teixeira were All-Stars. Or in 2005, when Teixeira, Travis Hafner and Vernon Wells were each driving in at least 97runs.

Thursday, the five of them combined to go 3-for-35, all three hits singles by Suzuki, with 12 strikeouts and 21 left on base. The Yankees stranded runners in scoring position in every inning from the 10th to the 14th.

"I think it's probably a little more frustrating because you can look at how you had an opportunity here and an opportunity there," Yankees manager Joe Girardi said. "A lot of guys probably look at that, but it doesn't change the result."

Catcher Chris Stewart took on a massive body blow from Brandon Moss but held onto the ball for a putout at the plate that squelched an Oakland threat in the 15th. Pinch-hitter Coco Crisp hit a looping single to left with one out, but left fielder Wells' throw reached Stewart on the fly just as Moss was trying to score from second, and the catcher shook off the collision.

The Yankees got an early-season boost from the likes of Wells, Hafner and Lyle Overbay, all brought in to fortify an offense decimated by the extended injury absences of Derek Jeter, Alex Rodriguez, Curtis Granderson and Teixeira (who returned May 31).

But those veterans have slumped in recent weeks — all are batting below .250 — leaving Cano to carry much of the offensive load.

Fortunately for New York, two underachievers from Los Angeles are on tap — the Angels in Anaheim this weekend and the Dodgers in the Bronx early next week.

But when competing in the loaded AL East, the only division with four winning teams, the challenge will remain imposing.

Reinforcements might not arrive for a few weeks — Jeter and Rodriguez are not due back until after the All-Star break — but the Yankees got good news Thursday when Jeter, sidelined since breaking his left ankle in the 2012 playoffs, was cleared to resume full baseball activities.

Sept. 19: Indians right fielder Matt Carson (center) is swarmed on the infield after hitting a game-winning single in the eleventh inning against the Astros at Progressive Field.
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Sept. 19: Members of the Rockies celebrate with center fielder Corey Dickerson after he hit a walk off triple to win the game during the 15th inning against the Cardinals at Coors Field. The Rockies won 7-6 in 15 innings.
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Sep. 12: The Los Angeles Dodgers celebrate with first baseman Adrian Gonzalez (center) after he hit a walk-off single against the San Francisco Giants in tenth inning at Dodger Stadium.
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Sept. 10: Los Angeles Dodgers left fielder Scott Van Slyke is greeted at home plate after he hits a two-run walk-off home run against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Dodger Stadium.
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Sept. 8: Giants' Angel Pagan, second from left, celebrates with teammates, from left, Brandon Crawford, Hector Sanchez, Ehire Adrianza and Joaquin Arias after hitting a walk-off single against the Diamondbacks' in the 11th inning.
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Sept. 4: Arizona Diamondbacks infielder Didi Gregorius drops dirt on the head of infielder Willie Bloomquist as they celebrate his walk off single against the Toronto Blue Jays.
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Philadelphia Phillies infielder Michael Young, left, is cheered by teammate Carlos Ruiz after making the game-winning run on a hit by Domonic Brown during the ninth inning of a baseball game to defeat the Colorado Rockies 5-4, Thursday, Aug. 22, 2013, in Philadelphia.
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Aug. 17: Tigers slugger Miguel Cabrera connects on a walk-off solo homer in the bottom of the ninth against the Royals in Detroit. Cabrera's blast, his 39th on the year, gave the Tigers a 6-5 win.
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Aug. 13: Diamondbacks' Paul Goldschmidt is dowsed with water by teammate Martin Prado as he runs toward home plate following his game-winning walk-off home run against the Orioles in the 11th inning.
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Aug. 11: Yankees center fielder Brett Gardner is mobbed at home plate by teammates after hitting a walk off home run against the Tigers at Yankee Stadium.
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Aug. 9: Los Angeles Dodgers celebrate after first baseman Adrian Gonzalez crossed the plate in the ninth inning of the game for the winning run against the Tampa Bay Rays.
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July 30: Alex Presley of the Pittsburgh Pirates is congratulated by Garrett Jones, above, and Neil Walker after a game-winning single in the eleventh inning against the St. Louis Cardinals.
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July 29: The San Diego Padres' Chris Denorfia is dumped with Powerade during an interview with reporter Kelly Crull following a walk-off home run against the Cincinnati Reds.
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July 28: Los Angeles Dodgers right fielder Yasiel Puig is greeted at home plate after he hits a walk-off solo home run in the eleventh inning against the Cincinnati Reds.
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July 28: Yankees left fielder Alfonso Soriano (center) is congratulated by teammates after hitting a game-winning single against the Tampa Bay Rays in the ninth inning on July 28.
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July 21: Boston Red Sox wait at home plate to congratulate first baseman Mike Napoli for his walk off home run against the New York Yankees during the eleventh inning at Fenway Park.
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Chicago White Sox first baseman Adam Dunn (32) celebrates with teammates after hitting a walk off home run to win the game during the ninth inning against the Baltimore Orioles on July 4.
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Reds center fielder Shin-Soo Choo (center) is congratulated by left fielder Chris Heisey (28) and second baseman Brandon Phillips (4) after hitting a game-winning single during the eleventh inning against the San Francisco Giants on July 3.
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Members of the Boston Red Sox wait at home plate for pinch hitter Jonny Gomes (5) after hitting a walk off home run during the ninth inning against the San Diego Padres on July 3.
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Pirates' Russell Martin, center, is greeted by teammates Jeanmar Gomez, left, and Josh Harrison after Martin drove in Gaby Sanchez with a pinch-hit in the 14th against the Brewers on June 30.
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June 26: Alex Gordon, center, gave the Royals a 4-3 win over the Braves in 10 innings with a game-winning RBI single. Gordon started the game with a leadoff home run in the first.
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June 25: Yankees outfielder Ichiro Suzuki celebrates his game-winning home run with teammates in the bottom of the ninth inning against the Texas Rangers at Yankee Stadium.
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Jun 23: Seattle Mariners designated hitter Kendrys Morales (8) is mobbed by his teammates after hitting the game-winning three-run home run against the Oakland Athletics during the 10th inning at Safeco Field.
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June 22: The Philadelphia Phillies' Freddy Galvis gives Kevin Frandsen a kick in the behind as he crosses home plate after a walk-off home run against the New York Mets.
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June 22: San Francisco Giants catcher Hector Sanchez celebrates with teammates after hitting a game-winning RBI single against the Miami Marlins in the 11th inning at AT,T Park.
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June 19: Brandon Phillips gives the Reds a 2-1 win over the Pirates with an RBI single in the 13th inning. In the ninth, the Reds sent the game to extra innings with a run off Pirates closer Jason Grilli, who blows his first save of the season.
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June 18: Arizona Diamondbacks first baseman Paul Goldschmidt is swarmed by teammates in celebration after hitting a walk off home run to beat the Miami Marlins 3-2 at Chase Field.
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June 18: Boston Red Sox's Jonny Gomes celebrates at home plate after hitting the game-winning two-run home run in the ninth inning against the Tampa Bay Rays in Game 2 of a doubleheader.
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June 17: Atlanta Braves first baseman Freddie Freeman celebrates a walk-off two-run home run with teammates in the ninth inning against the New York Mets at Turner Field.
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June 13: Athletics' Nate Freiman, second from right, is mobbed by his teammates after hitting the game-winning RBI single off Yankees pitcher Mariano Rivera in the 18th inning. Oakland won 3-2.
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June 8: Rajai Davis of the Toronto Blue Jays is mobbed by teammates after driving in the winning run in the 18th inning against the Texas Rangers at Rogers Centre in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
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May 27: Brandon Barnes of the Houston Astros, right, is mobbed by his teammates after his RBI double in the 12th inning to defeat the Colorado Rockies at Minute Maid Park in Houston.
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